A Matter of Interpretation

Throw in some keen analysis and insight, and you have the most
compelling evidence that the Internet is beginning to mirror
society at large.

At American Demographics, we have enough market research studies
crossing our desks every month to wallpaper a small mansion. And no
wonder: Spending on such research totaled $5.4 billion in 1999, a
55 percent increase from 1995, according to Inside
Research, a monthly newsletter based in Barrington, Illinois.
But while market research is killing off more trees than ever
before, it isn't necessarily becoming more useful. That's because
many of the folks who create it â€” as well as those who use it
â€” do not take enough time to effectively analyze and
interpret the mountains of data they produce.

That's not the case with the companies profiled in this month's
special report, â€œTop Guns.â€? In this section, we present
the nine semifinalists for the 2001 ARF David Ogilvy Research
Awards. These honors are conferred by the Advertising Research
Foundation for excellence in integrating market research into sound
business strategy. The nine companies profiled cut across
industries â€” from macaroni to motor oil â€” but they have
one element in common: All parlayed consumer research into
advertising and marketing campaigns with bottom line results.

The Ogilvy semifinalists did more than just commission studies;
they made sense of the research and used it to effectively target a
group of consumers. The same can be said for Contributing Editor
Michael J. Weiss. Few topics currently inspire as much research as
the Internet, and for this month's cover story, â€œOnline
America,â€? Weiss waded through an ocean of reports and
studies. Throw in dozens of interviews, as well as some keen
analysis and insight, and you have the most comprehensive portrait
to date of the online consumer. Weiss provides us with compelling
evidence that the Internet is beginning to mirror society at large.
The cyber world is shedding its geeky and elitist trappings and
beginning to look less white, less male, less affluent, and less
well-educated than the early days of the Web. One day soon we hope
to celebrate the final closing of the digital divide.

These changes create a world of opportunities â€” and risks
â€” for different marketers, making a clear understanding of
the shifting online landscape more important than ever. And while
good research isn't the magic potion for success in the
e-marketplace, it's a good place to start â€” as any of the
nine Ogilvy semifinalists could tell you.